Canna not flowering - advice? - Orchid Board

Pippa · #1 08-30-2020, 10:37 AM

I have a Canna indica 'Wyoming' that never flowers. I was given it as a freebie from a plant nursery as the tuber was so shrivelled they didn't think it would do anything. The first year, it just put up two tiny leaves and was less than 6 inches tall. This is it's fourth summer - it's been potted up twice and is now a lovely, healthy plant with lots of leaves about 2.5 feet tall, and with all the sun and warmth we've had this summer, I was really hopeful, but still no flowers.

The advice I've read said poor feeding, lack of watering and virus are the main three reasons for non flowering - but it gets plenty of food and water and has no signs of virus. Do I need to be patient and wait a couple more years or am I doing something wrong? It lives on my patio which is sheltered and full sun in summer and in winter it lives in the shed by the window.

estación seca · #2 08-30-2020, 11:37 AM

How big does this cultivar get in the ground in tropical climates? How big is your container? Are you growing it outside? Windowsill? Greenhouse? Is your warm growing season long enough to flower Cannas? How are you watering and fertilizing it?

Dollythehun · #3 08-30-2020, 04:06 PM

My opinion: you got a clinker. If you like the foliage, plant something flowering in with it. They generally like ample water, good and and sun. That being said, mine grow and flower well in dry sand with a hand full of time release. In my vegetable garden, they don't even get full sun and they're blooming.

It's not you.

camille1585 · #4 08-31-2020, 02:30 AM

What are you feeding it, and how much/often? The only thing I can think of is that it may be getting too much nitrogen, leading to lovely lush leaf growth but not flowers.

If you could post some photos, that could also be helpful.

Pippa · #5 08-31-2020, 05:52 AM

Thank you everyone for your help.

To answer your questions -

Pot size is 15 inches - the RHS advises a pot at least a foot wide, so think the pot is ok. It's expected to grow 4-5 feet in the ground, but less in pots. I do have a larger pot (couple of inches bigger) I could pot into next year - don't want to pot it up too big as it will be difficult to move under cover to overwinter - and it's definitely not winter hardy here!

It gets fed every 10-14 days with tomato food (my jatropha, passionflower and mandevilla are all thriving on it and flowering like crazy so I thought that would also be a good feed for the canna)

Although Wales is cold and wet, we're certainly able to flower cannas here, as there are lots in gardens that are open to the public and one of my neighbours has one in a pot that has flowered all summer - it's a different cultivar to mine (dark purple leaves) but always flowers really well and doesn't get any supplemental feeding.

I love the foliage, so if it never flowers, I'll still keep it - I'd just like to know that I'm not doing anything wrong, as I know flowering plants that have all their needs met usually flower!

rbarata · #6 08-31-2020, 09:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pippa

Although Wales is cold and wet, we're certainly able to flower cannas here, as there are lots in gardens that are open to the public ...

Why don't you ask the gardeners? They should be able to help you.

Dollythehun · #7 08-31-2020, 09:41 AM

Sometimes you just get an uncooperative plant. Or something that should be true to form and isn't. You're most likely not doing anything wrong. We just cut down three viburnums because they never bloomed right. It happens.

DirtyCoconuts · #8 08-31-2020, 10:30 AM

the leaves are lovely and it does not appear deficient in any way to me...i think that Dolly is on point here, might just be a defective plant.

my only thought would be up the sun exposure if you can. i grow all my canna (generic from the home depot) in full sun and they thrive so that is the only thing i could even think of adjusting.

patience as it might just be taking a long time to rebound fully.

Pippa · #9 08-31-2020, 11:10 AM

@rbarata, the advice I've been given is that the problem is likely to be lack of water/feed or a virus, but it doesn't seem to be any of those things - wondered if anyone here might have had any other ideas.

@DirtyCoconuts, last year, I grew it at the bottom of my garden where it was in full sun from sunup to sundown, but I didn't really get to see it (and it still didn't flower). I had it in the same position this year until June, when I moved it up to the patio so I could see it better - it gets sun from sunup until around 3pm now.

I'll try potting it up next spring and seeing if a bigger pot and another year's growth helps, but otherwise, I'll just keep enjoying those leaves - they are so beautiful, especially when they are backlit by the sun, so I can't really complain if I don't get flowers too. As long as I'm giving it what it needs to be happy!

---------- Post added at 04:10 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:08 PM ----------

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dollythehun

Sometimes you just get an uncooperative plant. Or something that should be true to form and isn't. You're most likely not doing anything wrong. We just cut down three viburnums because they never bloomed right. It happens.

I had this with a strelitzia I grew from seed - had it 10 years and it never flowered!

WaterWitchin · #10 08-31-2020, 12:03 PM

Wyoming is a late summer bloomer. My best guess is not a long enough growing season. That's pretty small heightwise for a Wyoming to be blooming. Can you get it started earlier in the spring?

Second guess... a clinker, as Carol says.

If you want to grow a really cool canna for the leaves, look into Phasion. It's my favorite, and the sun shining through the leaves is magical.

---------- Post added at 11:03 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:02 AM ----------

PS if the canna your neighbor is growing (burgundy leaves) has red flowers... it's an earlier and very prolific bloomer. Don't expect the same from Wyoming.